Man wanted in Kansas charged in wife's death

Eds: APNewsNow. UPDATES with charges; DELETES references to man shooting himself; CHANGES dateline.

OLATHE, Kan. Calif. (AP) -- A man who overdosed at a California hotel during a standoff with police has been charged with first-degree murder in his estranged wife's death in Johnson County, Kan.

The Kansas City Star reported on its Web site that the charges were filed Friday against 53-year-old Franklin L. Grammer, who was hospitalized in Gorman, Calif., after he barricaded himself in a hotel room there on Thursday.

Police who went into the hotel room originally said he had shot himself, but later said he apparently overdosed and had been bitten by a dog. Los Angeles police said Friday morning he was expected to recover.

Grammer had been sought by police since he fled after his wife, Betty Grammer, was found shot in the head Monday outside a house she was painting in Fairway, Kan.

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Information from: The Kansas City Star, http://www.kcstar.com